Meet Social media expert Neal Schaffer. He’s come a long way since becoming one of the first people to join Linkedin (true story) — he’s a social media consultant, fractional CMO and author (just to name a few of the many hats he wears). And now he’s making an appearance on the podcast to share his most important lessons learned over the course of his illustrious career. Do you have to be on every social media platform? Should you trust your gut when it comes to content marketing? What’s going t...
May 05, 2022•38 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Yvonne Ivanescu made her share of mistakes while launching an ethical swimwear brand, but they didn't slow her down. This honest entrepreneur, isn't afraid to talk about the struggles — or the triumphs — of creating a brand from scratch. Even Jeff & Francis, who don't hold anything back, were inspired by her authenticity. If you're a struggling entrepreneur, Yvonne's is the voice you need to hear right now.
Sep 17, 2021•49 min•Season 5Ep. 14
Jarod Spiewak has been in the marketing game since age 14, but he's been hustling since the 5th grade (which wasn't that long ago for him). Wunderkind jabs aside, he has unique perspectives on marketing and entrepreneurship, particularly where client selection is concerned. He also has a respectable appreciation for '90s films, so as you might imagine, he won Jeff and Francis over pretty fast.
Sep 14, 2021•51 min•Season 5Ep. 13
Shane Barker is back! And he's brought the usual jokes, insights and anecdotes with him. Hear about his exploits since we last spoke in 2018. They involve saving small businesses, trying ayahuasca and being Shane Barker, digital marketer extraordinaire (not necessarily in that order).
Jul 28, 2021•51 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Not only do we discuss SEO at length, but also considerations for running an SEO company. Greg Digneo of Content Guppy is one hell of a guest—a great storyteller, a seasoned SEO and a plainspoken poet of sorts. This is one of the good ones, folks. You'll learn stuff, you'll laugh and you'll walk away feeling a little more OK with things than when the episode started.
Jul 08, 2021•48 min•Season 5Ep. 11
It’s vintage Above the Fold: Just Jeff, Francis and much ado about nothing pertaining to marketing. You'll learn a bit about VR, a bit about the perils of publishing SEO-tool comparisons and a lot about Francis and Jeff. This is a fun one.
Jun 22, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Do-gooder Diana Fryc sees brands as a force for good, but a lot goes into walking that walk. Fortunately, she knows all the steps. The co-founder of Voodoo Retail, and host of The "Gooder" Podcast, walks us through food equity, conscious capitalism, women in leadership roles, sustainability and more on what is possibly the most important episode of Above the Fold to date.
Jun 08, 2021•57 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Josh Little dreams of a world with fewer meetings and crunchier pickles. Hear his plan to minimize meetings and maximize crunch on this week's episode of Above the Fold, which is dedicated to everyone out there who's sick and tired of pointless meetings.
May 12, 2021•48 min•Season 5Ep. 8
How do you market addiction-recovery services? It's an intimate endeavor—as all health care marketing is—and it's one that Colin Jeffries, Director of Marketing & Communications at BrightView, knows a lot about. Listen as he and Francis explore the nuances of health care marketing and the power of empathy in brand messaging.
May 05, 2021•49 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Lisa Jacobs has lived . This lawyer turned van lifer/digital-nomad coach/blogger/influencer is really good at being uncomfortable (and growing from that discomfort). If you're at an inflection point in your life or are considering trying something new, Lisa’s is the voice you need to hear right now. And if not, this is still a really fun use of 37 minutes.
Apr 26, 2021•37 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Grocery shopping is about to get interesting. Because there's a science to how people shop for consumer goods, and Michael Keplinger, SmashBrand's Director of Strategy knows it inside and out. If you've ever wondered why labels look the way they look and say the things they say (or don't), you're in for a treat.
Apr 16, 2021•41 min•Season 5Ep. 5
What's your favorite mushroom? Jeff Chilton, CEO of Nammex, can tell you facts about it that would floor you. In our strangest episode yet, we explore the medicinal, spiritual, mythical, cultural and societal significance of mushrooms. You will never look at a mushroom the same way again. Learn more about Jeff's company here: https://www.nammex.com
Apr 06, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Featuring Kevin Leeds, developer from Arizona, the gang sips whiskey and talks crypto and Gamestop explosions, reviving airships for the purpose of partying, and rappelling down cliffs in Mexico on your butt. Don't miss this episode of Below the Fold.
Mar 10, 2021•47 min•Season 5Ep. 3
The seriously skilled Melissa Berrios is a former civil engineer from Puerto Rico turned marketing consultant who also happens to be a singer, guitarist, podcaster, and travel blogger. But social media strategy is her bread and butter, and she dished out plenty of wisdom on this episode of Above the Fold. You can learn about Melissa (and listen to her podcast) @ https://www.melissaberrios.net/
Feb 09, 2021•43 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Jeff and Francis kick-off 2021 with the first-ever "found" episode of Above the Fold (we have an unfortunate history of losing episodes, but this is the first time we've found one). The boys are joined by former Brafton employee and content manager extraordinaire, Connor McGann, about what goes into starting a podcast. *Note: This is a must-listen for anyone who's had even half a thought about maybe, possibly, someday starting a podcast.
Jan 25, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Special guest Tony Guarnaccia has lived . He faced homelessness (twice), made a cake for Jennifer Lopez (seriously) and rubbed elbows with executives at some of the world's most recognizable brands. Listen to him tell his story and discuss SEO, entrepreneurship, and resilience with Jeff and Francis.
Dec 01, 2020•44 min•Season 4Ep. 7
John Vuong, Local SEO Search owner, and Jeff swap odd-jobs stories (like the time Jeff was a professional mosquito mercenary) before diving into the world of local SEO. Learn, among other things, how not to respond to "getting Karened" on Google.
Nov 17, 2020•48 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Clearscope is a tool that helps content marketers and SEO experts create content that will rank in Google Search. Co-founder Bernarnd Huang explains the shifting landscape of Google search and how marketers can use tools to stay ahead of the curve.
Aug 03, 2020•52 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Will Stevens of Seer Interactive talks about how he kicked himself into gear to start writing his first book. He also shares predictions on the long-term business ramifications of the coronavirus lockdown.
Jun 19, 2020•50 min•Season 4Ep. 4
How do the boys get such interesting guests? They get help, and one of those people is Jessica Rhodes and her company Interview Connections. Taped in the pro-COVID19 days, this episode looks at the business of getting guests on podcasts and why there's no uniform way to record them. Also y'all should thank her because without Rhodes this podcast would be a parade of Jeff and Francis' drunken marketing friends all whining about the same thing.
May 11, 2020•38 min•Season 4Ep. 2
The boys express the realities of the current crisis, only to find their footing again when they realize the one thing that will get them out of their funk - their hatred of LinkedIn sales messages. Better yet, they have thrown out a challenge to the collective LinkedIn community.
Apr 28, 2020•56 min•Season 4Ep. 1
What did it feel like for New Zealand to be one of the first countries to deal with Instagram's new policy of hiding likes? Francis found a digital marketing veteran named Greg Roughan to speak for the entire country on this episode of Above the Fold. Full Transparency: We recorded this back in August of this year and Jeff just found it under a stack of spam emails. Loyal listeners may remember that we talked about Greg back in season 1, episode 3 when Francis messed up his last name. He still c...
Dec 09, 2019•51 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Meredith Golden is the rarest type of person. That thing Golden does? People who can’t figure out why their online dating profiles repel romance come to her for help. And she provides it for a fee. As you might expect, this episode of Above the Fold quickly revealed itself to be one of the most intriguing yet. Here’s what’s inside: Lots of good advice about online dating A few examples of what not to do on Tinder. The eerie realization that online dating is digital marketing in disguise....
Nov 11, 2019•54 min•Season 3Ep. 4
On this episode of Above the Fold, Jeff Baker is accompanied by the soporific stylings of Canadian entrepreneur, marketer, co-founder of Kula Partners, host of the Kula Ring podcast and semi-sonic doppelganger of the late, great Leonard Cohen. The discourse du jour: Reimagining the shape of the sales and marketing funnel.
Nov 04, 2019•52 min•Season 3Ep. 3
The year was 2001 and Trent Dyrsmid - founder of the Bright Ideas podcast and Flowster - was earning $200k a year to play golf and go to dinner with stockbrokers. But he was bored and, in his mind, underachieving. Plus, he never cared much for golf. So, he did as the entrepreneurs do: “I decided that I was going to quit that job and I was going to sell everything that I own to start a business.” The odyssey that followed was both topsy-turvy and immensely illuminating. In this episode of Above t...
Oct 28, 2019•58 min•Season 3Ep. 2
To start season three, Mike Carroll from Nutshell joins us for a harmless discussion about how sales and marketing can work well together. Then, without warning, he turns into a rabid beast and goes nuclear on Facebook. Baker introduced his guest, Michael “Mike” Carroll, head of growth at Nutshell CRM. There was also some speak of all the weed Joe Rogan smokes - you know, the usual stuff. Anyway, the conversation tumbled its way toward sales enablement. This part was super insightful and got to ...
Oct 21, 2019•53 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Apparently, a great story plus great data can change a marketing campaign. This is a shocking development for Jeff and Francis. Join us and our guest David Lemley as we dig into why numbers and creative can fuel the bottom line.
Aug 12, 2019•53 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Special guest Tommy Griffith of Clickminded talks SEO training courses, college degree scams, and how SEO media has turned into a clickbait industry. 2:00 - Starting a $100k business on the side. 17:00 - The state of the clickbait SEO media industry. 35:40 - Colleges selling worthless digital marketing degrees for $50-100k, before the curriculum is even set.
Aug 05, 2019•54 min•Season 2Ep. 17
An expose on the people who have to manually review and censor offensive and violent content on Facebook. An influencer with over 3 million followers couldn’t sell 36 t-shirts. Northface caught trying to hack Wikipedia. What? Rand lays out the case against Google for the department of justice. Because, they definitely couldn’t figure it out themselves.
Jul 29, 2019•51 min•Season 2Ep. 16
Your brand is more important than your website when it comes to SEO. What the hell does that mean? That's exactly what we asked Garrett Mehrguth, CEO of Directive, when he pitched us this podcast topic. Garrett explains the value of not just showing up in search results for the keywords you are targeting, but also having your brand show up in search results that are not part of your website. Call it SEO brand reach? Call it Call it guest blogging and online partnerships? Call it reputation manag...
Jun 24, 2019•43 min•Season 2Ep. 15
